Happy Thought for 11 April 2025
Have a Happy Thought:
Flags are a great way to show affiliation – with a team, or a social group, or, most often, a country. Flag design can be very in-depth, with vexillologists finding meaning in the smallest of details.
For example, the shape of the flag is very important – and while there are only two recognized countries with a square flag, the rectangularness1 of other national flags varies quite a bit! So for example, the flag of the United States of America has a 10:19 ratio, while the New Zealand flag is a 1:2 ratio.
1 Definitely not a word, but you still get what I mean
However, the New Zealand Flag has a LOT more complexity on the inside, even using irrational numbers to define how the elements fit together.
Australia has kept their design specifications... simpler.
The United States, meanwhile, is a lot more loose in its definitions, so this design, technically, meets the written design requirements for the United States... :
Image: @BitsHammer on Twitter
However, the code was later amended by Executive order to include a drawing, so this is what we normally see (Note: the exact shades of red and blue have never been specified by Code or by Executive Order, so if you want a pastel version you can do it!):
Image: USCODE-2011-title4-chap1.pdf
Nepal, meanwhile, went for non-rectangular, and perhaps even more complex in its geometry than New Zealand (and yes, apparently it’s best if you follow the steps in order when creating a Nepalese flag):
Image: Nepal Flag Construction, HorstGerhard, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
Back to the New Zealand Flag... some years ago, the New Zealand Government considered changing the flag. Many options were considered by specialists as well as the public, in a referendum that eventually determined staying with the existing flag.
My personal vote, however, was and remains with this masterpiece that, sadly, the world will never know^.
Image: Fire the Lazar, flag designed by Lucy Gray
We in Aotearoa New Zealand do also have the Tino Rangatiratanga flag that complements the New Zealand flag, which was successfully developed through a national conversation. The colours represent the three realms of being (Black is Te Korekore, potential; Red is Te Whai Ao, coming into being; white is Te Ao Mārama, the realm of being and light), joined in a koru, the symbol of unfolding of new life, hope for the future, and the process of renewal.
Image: Te kara Tino Rangatiratanga
A final note, since we’re talking about colours, and for those still reading. Apparently “Purple” doesn’t exist – it's all in our heads! I can’t write this up any better than this actual science writer, so I’ll just link to their article for you to read and blow your minds.
Thanks to everyone who contributed to this thread-conversation for inspiring us to look more closely at flags!
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